


Holding On and Not Letting Go

by Emeli_Thorne



Series: My Forever Is Yours [4]
Category: The Walking Dead & Related Fandoms, The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Zombie Apocalypse, F/M, Jealous Shane, Self-Doubt, smitten boi Shane
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-06
Updated: 2018-04-06
Packaged: 2019-04-19 07:57:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,771
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14232777
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Emeli_Thorne/pseuds/Emeli_Thorne
Summary: Shane sees a guy flirting with Tess and his jealousy and self-doubt rear their ugly head for a moment.





	Holding On and Not Letting Go

**Author's Note:**

  * For [PF23](https://archiveofourown.org/users/PF23/gifts).



> tumblr prompt by allinourprivate-traps: jealous! Shane
> 
> I hope you'll like this, sweetie <3 <3 
> 
> Timeline: Shane and Tess have been going out for a few months, after their first unofficial date at Tess’ place (hinted at in the previous part)

 

Shane’s shift just finished and he is hurrying to meet with Tess outside so they could go to the grocery store together. Tess could have gone alone, but Shane insisted they go together because they haven’t been spending a lot of time together lately due to Tess working overtime at the motel.

He misses her, especially since they started staying at each other’s places. His apartment seems so hollow and lonely when she’s not there, which should be strange since he’s been living there, _alone_ , for the past seven years. He misses her in his bed, misses hearing her sing in the shower, misses watching tv with her and her complaining when reality show contestants prove to be too dense for her liking.

As he is leaving the locker room, his sports bag thrown over his shoulder, he is just about to text her to let her know he is done when he hears her voice further down the hallway. When he reaches the reception area, he sees her leaned against the desk talking to Officer Webster, a rookie who started working there a couple of months ago.

He’s two years older than Tess and a big flirt, sporting a smug look that never leaves his face. His sandy blond hair and ocean blue eyes, as he has heard his female colleagues describe him, make him Tess’ dream guy.

Some time ago, on their fourth date, they talked about their previous relationships and Tess confessed she had a thing for blond guys. Add some blue eyes in the mix and a short beard, and she was a goner, she told him then. Shane would be lying if he said he hadn’t considered dyeing his hair for a split second before he realised how dumb the idea was and how stupid he would look.

Tess, his beautiful Tess, is dressed in her usual sweatpants and one of his t-shirts that are a few sizes too big for her and one of his hoodies over it, and her short hair is messily stylized. She looks as wonderful as always, but the smile playing on her face as she talks to Webster is a bit too much for Shane, especially when Webster leans forward, resting his elbows on the desk and gives Tess the widest of grins. Shane gets an inexplicable urge to smash his fist against that pretty boy’s face just to erase the damn smirk.

His feet won’t move for some reason so he’s stuck behind a filing cabinet, having to witness this exchange and his mind starts to conjure scenarios that make him sick to his stomach.

_Why are they so friendly with each other?_

Parts of their conversation reach his ears, making him uncomfortable and really mad at himself for being such a jerk, spying on his girl in his own station, though he can’t help himself.

“I haven’t seen you in ages! How long ‘ave you been workin’ here?” Tess asks him with a genuine interest in her voice.

_So, they know each other? From where?_

“A couple of months. It’s been okay so far.”

“What made you ditch that bad boy persona? I thought that’d be your lifestyle till you turn fifty,” Tess jokes and they both laugh.

The angle enables Shane to see the rookie’s face and man, he is smitten! Shane knows because that must be the same look he has whenever he talks or thinks about her and Rick teases him about it. He thought Rick was just messing with him, but seeing this guy now...

He understands, of course. It’s Tess, after all.  He just wishes this dude would stop ogling his girl!

“I just wanted some change, got tired of being the bad boy all the time,” Officer Webster says with a half grin and Tess chuckles, shaking her head and tucking her hands into her pockets.

_A bad boy? What the fuck does that even mean? How well do they know each other?_

“Good for you then. How’s your mom?”

Shane tunes them out for a bit, his attention fixed on the cute little dimple on Tess’ cheek and the way this conversation is too familiar for his liking, making him unconsciously clench his fists, his fingers flexing around his phone. For some reason he imagines throwing it at the guy.

 It’s not like he’s jealous, because he’s not.

 He’s not.

 Shane Walsh doesn’t do jealous.

 That feeling is for insecure idiots and he most certainly isn’t that.

Shane Walsh doesn’t even know what being jealous is like.

His jaw starts to hurt and it’s then he realises he’s been clenching his teeth, his mouth probably drawn in a snarl as Webster laughs at something Tess says and tilts his head, eating her up with his eyes.

_That fucker._

People pass by him greeting him, but Shane just nods absentmindedly, not really seeing them. He doesn’t really see anyone but her and this asshole who is openly flirting with her.

_Oh, this fucker’s goin’ down. Hard!_

“Tell me about you,” Webster says, leaning forward again so he’s basically in Tess’ face. His girl steps back, bless her, and Shane can’t help but cheer a bit on the inside. She’s giving this guy a clear signal she’s not interested. What more does he want?

“What does Tessie do nowadays?”

_Tessie? Tessie?!_

He’s only ever heard her friends call her that, and to be honest, he’s not a big fan of the nickname. It sounds childish and stupid and does zero justice to Tess. It sounds more like they’re mocking her, and it irks him all the time.

It dawns on him then: it was Tess’ nickname in high school. So this guy must know here from high school. They couldn’t be in the same class though, but they could have been friends back then.

Shane is racking his brain trying to remember if Tess ever mentioned this dude to him in any conversation. The more he observes them and their exchange, the more he wants to  know what is up with them but he’s too much of a chicken to just walk up and ask them himself.

“Deputy, shouldn’t you be heading home already? You’re shift’s over,” Mulaney appears behind him, looking at him in confusion.

Sighing, he briefly turns his head to respond. “Yeah, just forgot somethin’.” Shane’s tone is curt and Mulaney gets the message, leaving the deputy to lurk behind the filing cabinet.

 _I must look like a damn creep_ , Shane thinks. He’s annoyed with himself at this point. Why can’t he just go and see what’s up?

The truth is, he wants to see how far Webster’s willing to go, hopes he’ll give him an excuse to pound his smug face against that desk.

Then it hits him, the realization of the guy’s identity, it’s like a punch to the gut. His breath is stuck in his throat, heart pounding fast against his chest.

He’s Tess’ ex! The one she said she was madly in love with in high school.

_Fuck, fuck, fuck!_

He’s having a mini melt down right there in his station, a few feet from his girl who’s talking to her ex.

_Fucking great. Shit._

Then Webster’s flashing her another fucking grin and asking “Wanna grab dinner sometime? We can catch up and I can show you Jack’s embarrassing photos from college” and Shane’s about to go there and throw him up against the fucking wall.

But Tess’ voice reaches him, instantaneously soothing his wild temper.

“I don’t think that would be a good idea. I’m seeing someone.”

“Oh. Anyone I know?”

The fucker sounds disappointed. _You should be, asshole._

Her cheeks grow slightly pink when she smiles and Shane’s heart feels like bursting from sheer happiness. The way she says _deputy Walsh_ will always be such a turn on for him, more so because he knows how much she loves to call him that.

Shane decides he’s been a creeper for way to long and taking a deep breath, heads down the hallway, to his girl.

He reaches her just as Webster is mouthing to say something. Tess’ eyes are already on him though, her lips spread in an impossible grin, her eyes shining so brightly Shane wants to carve this image into his mind.

“Baby!” she calls him, running up into his open arms and wrapping her arms around his neck, her lips brushing against his.

Her body pressed against his, her soft lips ghosting his, her bangs brushing against his nose... It’s a moment of quiet joy Shane so desperately wants to hold on to forever. His eyes are closed as she kisses him more passionately almost taking his breath away.

When he pulls back and gazes into her eyes, he sees nothing but love and admiration.

All thoughts of beating up Webster disappear, replaced by thoughts of a quiet night in with his girl tucked under a blanket while they watch a bad reality tv show.

And he realises that nothing matters, no one else matters but the two of them and what they have. Whatever Webster and she might have had, it’s in the past.

“You okay?” he asks her because he still has to check, has to make sure that whatever Webster and she talked about didn’t hurt her.

Nodding, Tess intertwines their hands and tugs him towards the door, waving goodbye to Webster who is left crestfallen and stunned.

“Take care, rookie,” Shane adds with a wink because he can be an asshole too sometimes.

Outside the station, Tess pulls him into a hug, her head resting on his chest, right where his heart is. Putting his hand on the small of her back, he kisses the crown of her head, the smell of her shampoo engulfing his senses.

“Hey, darlin’? You alright?”

She looks up and the way streetlight falls on her, she appears as an angel, a pure being in the arms of a sinner.

“I am. I’m so lucky to have a man like you in my life. A good, honourable man. I love you, baby.”

The sinner smiles at his angel, holds her tightly against him for fear she’ll disappear, find someone of her kind and leave him for something better.

But it lasts a second, that feeling. One lousy second before is disperses when she touches his cheek so tenderly, her thumb brushing over his cheekbone.

He’s a sinner, she’s an angel. And she chose him anyway.

 _I’m not going anywhere_ , she tells him with her touch.

“I love you, darlin’.”

 _I’m not letting go_ , he tells her with his forehead pressed against hers.

**Author's Note:**

> Please leave kudos and comments, they are the only thing letting me know my fics have readers. Feedback is my lifeline :D
> 
> you can send me prompts for this 'verse on tumblr or leave them here as comments
> 
> find me on tumblr at lightblindingme


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